Big Slick

For those who don't play Hold 'Em, Big Slick is arguably one of the best hands you can get in poker. Ace and King are two of the highest cars in the deck, and if they're of the same suit, they'll set you up for a mean Two Pair, Killer Full House, or the best 5 cards of all, a Royal Flush. It's a killer combo; one you'd be wise not to mess with.

Like the Ten Commandments, the Seven Deadly Sins stem from just two roots. These two, in themselves, are just different results of the same original state. They’re all a matter of possessions, and varying degrees of maintaining them or acquiring more. No two sins illustrate these more accurately than Pride and Greed. Pride is a matter of protecting what exists. Greed is a matter of acquiring more, irregardless of what’s already there.

Lately, it seems I’ve been guilty of both. Pride because I’ve been reveling in what some can perceive as a personal accomplishment. It’s changed me positively on some fronts, but negatively in others. Yet here I am, still rejoicing and rather smug about it. Greed because, despite the fortunes I’ve had so far, the temptation to exploit it further has been too great to resist at times. The trouble with greed is that you’re never satisfied with what you have. Pride only reinforces the idea that you could get more. Those in tandem with the five other sins… well, you get the picture.

Indeed the others are just as deadly or addictive. But it’s the combo that gets you, some perhaps more effectively than others. Boy isn’t that Satan a devious fellow. So who's up for poker?